Lord shall not come, except there come a defection before, and that the man of sinne be reueled, the proude aduersary of God &c. 2. Thessal. 2. meanyng (no doubt) by this defection, a partyng and a fallyng from that fayth whiche the holy ghost had then planted by his ministery, among the Gentiles. As we see it now come to passe in the Churche of Rome. MarginaliaA vew of the Popes Catholicke Church.Whiche Churche is gone from the fayth that S. Paul taught, that if he were now alyue, and saw these Decrees & Decretals of the Byshop of Rome, these heapes of ceremonies & traditions, these Masse bookes, these Portuses, these Festiuals and legendes, these Processionals, Hymnes and Sequences, these Beades and Graduals, & maner of their inuocation, their Canons, censures, and latter Councels, such swarmes of superstitious Monkes and Friers, such sectes of so many diuers religons, the Testament of S. Fraunces, the rule of S. Benedict, of S. Brigit, of S. Anthony. &c, the intricate subtleties and labyrinthes of the scholemen, the infinite cases and distrinctions of the Canonistes, the Sermons in Churches, the assertions in scholes, the glory of the Pope, the pride of the Clergy, the cruelty of persecutyng Prelates with their officials & promotors: he would say this were not a defection, but rather a playne destruction and a ruine of fayth: neither that this were any true Church of Christ, MarginaliaThe Churche of Rome degenerated agayne almost to new Paganisme.but a new found Religiō, or paganisme rather brought in vnder the shadow of Christianitie, wherin remaineth almost nothing els but the name onely of Christ, and the outward forme of his religion, the true vayne, and effect wherof is vtterly decayed, as to them whiche lyst to examine all the partes of this new Romish Religion, may soone appeare.

For saue onely that they pretend the solemne forme and wordes of the Crede, & are Baptised, confessing the name of the father, the sonne, and holy Ghost: As touchyng all other poyntes, and true sincerity of the Christiā faith which they outwardly professe, they are vtterly degenerated from that, which S. Paule & the word of God first had taught them.

MarginaliaThe Popes Church onely in words Catholicke, in deede hethenishe.First, they cōfesse the father in word, but his will in his word expresed they renounce, his grace they acknowledge not, his benefites and promises giuen vnto vs in his sonne they receaue not, the vigor of his law they feele not, the terrour of his iudgements earnestly they feare not, his commaundementes they obscure by the traditions and commaundements of their owne.

Likewise the name of Christ his sonne in worde they confesse, but his office in deede they deface and diminish: his glory they seeke not, but vnder his name they do seeke their owne: the power of his bloud and Passion they know not or els dessemble it, whom neither they admitte to be the head of his Church alone, nor Sauiour alone, nor onely to be our patron & aduocate: but match with him our Lady, and other patrons, so that euery Parish almost in Christendome hath his peculiar patrone besides Christ to hold by.

In like maner they confesse the name of the holy Ghost. But God hym selfe knoweth how farre they are from the comfort, knowledge, and tast of the holy Ghost, as well may appeare by their Councels, by their expoundyng of Scripture, MarginaliaThe Religion of the Popes church procedeth contrary to the workyng of the holy ghost.by their superstitious ceremonies, by their outward worshyppyng and Idolatrous inuocation to stockes and stones and dead creatures, by their scrupulous obseruation of dayes, times, places, numbers and gestures: And no lesse also by their doctrine, which defraudeth the poore hartes of simple Christians, of their due consolation, ioy, and libertie in the holy Ghost, & keepeth them still in a seruile bondage, and a doubtfull incerteinty of their saluation, contrary to the workyng of the holy spirite of God.

MarginaliaThe Churche of Rome pretendeth a fayre face of Religion, but is voyde of the effect therof.And thus the Churche of Rome pretendyng onely the name of Christ and of his Religion, is so farre altered from the truth of that which it pretendeth, that vnder the name of Christ, it persecuteth both Christ and his Religiō: workyng more harme to the Churche of Christ, then euer dyd the open tyrantes and persecutyng Emperours among the heathen: MarginaliaThe old Phariseis, and the later Church of Romaines compared together.Not much vnlike herein to the old Synagoge of the Scribes and Phariseis, who vnder the name of God, crucified the sonne of God, and vnder pretence of the law, fought agaynst the Gospell, and vnder the title of Abrahams childrē, persecuted the children of Abraham. And as they braggyng so highly of the Temple of the Lord, the Tēple of the Lord, dyd in deede destroy the true Temple of the Lord: right so these pretensed Catholickes in these dayes, after they haue raysed vp a Catholicke Church of their owne, and haue armed the same with lawes, and haue gathered vnto them a power of Priestes, Prelates, Abbats, Priors, of religious men, of Cardinals, and also of secular Princes to take their part, now vnder the name of the Catholicke church, MarginaliaThe Popes Church vnder the name of the Catholicke church, persecuteth the true Cathelicke Churche of Christ.they persecute the true Catholicke church, and coloryng their procedinges still with In nomine Domi ni, most cruelly they put to death, which dye pro nomine Domini, condemning them for heretickes, schismatickes, and rebels, not which deny any part of the Creede, whiche they them selues professe, nor such whom they can conuince by any Scripture, but onely such which will not ioyne with their errours and heresies cōtrary to the honour of God, and truth of his word.

And lest any should thinke this that we here protest agaynst the corrupt errours and manifold deformities of this latter Church of Rome, to procede of any rancor or affection, rather then grounded of necessary causes, and demonstrations euident, my purpose is (by the Lordes leaue) to take herein some litle payne, that as I haue collected a litle before, the summe & contentes of S. Paules doctrine, where with the old Churche of Rome was first seasoned and acquaynted, so now as in a like summary table, to discrye the particular braunches and contentes of the Popes doctrine now set forth, to the entent that all true Christian readers comparying the one with the other may discerne what great alteration there is betwene the Church of Rome that now is, and the Church of Rome that then was, planted by the Apostles in the primitiue tyme. And to open to the simple reader some way whereby he may the better iudge in such matters of doctrine, and not be deceaued in discernyng truth from errour, first we will propounde certeine principles or generall positions, as infallible rules or truthes of Scripture, whereby all other doctrines and opinions of men beyng tryed and examined as with the touchstone, may the more easely be iudged whether they be true or contrary, and whether they make agaynst the Scripture, or no.

MarginaliaCerteine generall principles & rules gathered of the scriptures. ¶ The first Principle. 1. AS sinne and death came originally by the disobedience of one to all men of his generation by nature: so rightuousnes and life come originally by the obedience of one to all men regenerated of him, by faith and Baptisme. Rom. 5. ¶ The 2. Principle. MarginaliaGen. 3.2. The promise of God was freely giuen to our first parentes without their deseruyng, that the seede of a woman should breake the Serpentes head. Gen. 3. ¶ The 3. Principle. MarginaliaGen. 12.3. Promise was giuen freely to Abraham before he deserued any thyng, that in his seede all nations should be blessed. Gen. 12. ¶ The 4. Principle. MarginaliaDeut. 4.4. To the word of God neither must we adde, nor take from it. Duet. 4. ¶ The 5. Principle. MarginaliaLeuit. 18.
Gal. 3.5. He that doth the workes of the law, shall lyue therin. Leuit. 18. Gal. 3. ¶ The 6. Principle. MarginaliaDeut. 27.
Gal. 3.6. Accursed is he, which abideth not in euery thyng that is written in the booke of the law. Deut. 27. Gal. 3. ¶ The 7. Principle. MarginaliaDeut. 6.
Luc. 4.7. God onely is to be worshipped. Deut. 6. Luc. 4. ¶ The 8. Principle. MarginaliaEsay. 64.8. All our rightuousnes is like a defiled cloth of a woman. Esay. 64. ¶ The 9. Principle. MarginaliaEsay. 11. 65.9. In all my holy hill, they shall not kill, nor slay, sayth the Lord. Esay. 11. 65. ¶ The 10. Principle. MarginaliaOsee. 6.
1. Reg. 15.10. God loueth mercy and obedience, more then sacrifice. Osee. 6. 1. Reg. 15. ¶ The 11. Principle. MarginaliaRom. 3.11. The law worketh anger, condemneth, and openeth sinne. Rom. 3. ¶ The 12. Principle. MarginaliaRom. 10.12. The end of the law is Christ, to rightuousnes to euery one that beleueth. Rom. 10. ¶ The 13. Principle. MarginaliaMat. vlt.13. Whosoeuer beleueth and is Baptised, shall be saued. Mat. vlt. ¶ The 14. Principle. MarginaliaGal. 2.
Ephes. 2.14. A man is iustified by fayth without workes freely by grace, not of our selues. Gal. 2. Ephes. 2. ¶ The 15. Principle. MarginaliaHeb. 9.15. There is no remission of sinnes without bloud. Heb. 9. ¶ The 16. Principle. MarginaliaRom. 14.
Heb. 11.16. Whatsoeuer is not of fayth is sinne. Rom. 14. without fayth it is impossible to please God. Heb. 11. ¶ The 17. Principle.